Pedestal for pole display



Jan. 26, 1965 F. A. MAGUIRE PEDESTAL FOR POLE DISPLAY Filed Nov. 6, 1965 v I a /l INVENTOR: 169E045 PIC If ,4- MAGZl/Af' AWE/PMS? United States Patent 3,167,291 PEDESTAL FOR POLE DISPLAY Frederick A. Maguire, Pompton Plains, N.J., assignor to Interstate Booehever Corp, Fair Lawn, N.J., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Nov. 6, 1963, Ser. No. 321,736 Claims. (Cl. 248-1881) port means may rest on the floor of the establishment in I which the display is located, on a counter top, or on any other convenient surface.

A widely used type of support means consists of two pieces of wire, each bent to form a U-shaped central portion and a leg extending outwardly from each end of the U and in the same plane as the U. The poles employed in these displays are usually hollow cardboard tubes, and therefore the central portions of the two wires, when inverted, can be inserted into the lower end of the tube. The wires are so arranged that the legs of one extend perpendicular to the legs of the other, thereby forming a relatively stable base. Support means of this type have proven satisfactory, from a functional point of view, but they are distinctly unattractive.

It is therefore a general object of the present invention to provide a pedestal for supporting a pole display which is attractive yet thoroughly practical from the points of view of manufacture, shipping, and use.

It is another object of the invention to provide such a pedestal which can be mass produced and which is commercially practical.

It is a further object of the invention to provide such a pedestal which can be knocked-down to form a compact package for storage and shipment.

It is yet another object to provide such a pedestal which can be employed to support solid as well as hollow poles.

It is still another object to provide a pedestal suitable for formation from a light-weight molded plastic.

To accomplish these objectives, the present invention provides a pedestal comprising a tubular portion having a longitudinal bore for accommodating the lower end of an advertising display pole. The tubular portion is formed of upper and lower separable sections each having a pair of legs projecting laterally from it. When the sections are fitted together in vertical alignment, the legs form a very stable cross-shaped supporting area. When the sections are separated, the two independent components of the pedestal can be arranged to form a relatively flat package. In addition, means are provided for insuring that the parts of the pedestal, when joined in their operative relationship, form a tight-fitting rigid structure.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description in which reference is made to the accompanying drawing.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an illustrative embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken on line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a horizontal cross-sectional view taken on line 33 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of the two components of the pedestal in separated condition.

The pedestal chosen to illustrate the present invention 3,167,291 Patented Jan. 26, 1965 comprises generally a central tubular portion 10, and four leg portions 11 and 12. The tubular portion 10 is formed in two sections, an upper section 13 and a lower section 14. Each of the leg portions comprises a base and an upstanding web on the base, the height of the webbing about equal to the total height of the central portion 10. Thus, each leg portion 11 includes a base 15 and web 16, and each leg portion 12 includes a base 19 and web 20.

The central portion 10 of the pedestal is provided with a longitudinal bore 21 for accommodating the lower end of a pole 22. The pole will ordinarily carry an advertising display, such as a sign 23, near its upper end. The outer surface of the central portion 10 is preferably provided with a polygonal cross-sectional shape whereby the portion 10 presents a plurality of flat faces 24 arranged at angles to one another. The purpose of this shape will be seen hereinafter.

The central portion 10 is divided into the upper section 13 and lower section 14 along'a generally transverse line. The line is not straight, however, but is stepped to provide the upper surface of section 14 and lower surface of section 13 with cooperable stepped contours (see FIGS. 2 and 4). These contours each present a pair of non-horizontal faces, these faces being vertical in the. present example. The non-horizontal faces of section 13 bear the reference numeral 27 and the comparable faces of section 14 bear the reference numeral 28. When the sections 13 and 14 are fitted together in vertical alignment as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the pairs of faces 27 and 28 are disposed in opposition to each other and thereby prevent relative rotation between the sections about a longitudinal axis.

The leg portions 11 are fastened to the lower section 14 of the central portion 10, and the leg portions 12 are fastened to the upper section 13. The base 15 and the lower region of the web 16 of one leg portion 11' are secured to one of the faces24 of the lower section 14, and the base 15 and the lower region of the web 16 of the other leg portion 11 are secured to an opposite face 24. Consequently, the leg portions 11 project from the section 11 in opposite directions. The lateral margins of each base 15 extend past the web 16 and are secured to areas of the faces 24 adjacent to and on either side of the face to which the base and web are secured. In addition, the inner ends of these margins are cut at an angle to cooperate with the bases 19 of the leg portions 12, as will be described hereinafter. The upper regions of the webs 16 project above the upper surface of the section 14, and are spaced apart a distance equal to the face-to-face dimension of the section 13 so that they can snugly accommodate the section 13 between them. The bases 15, webs 16, and section 14 may be integrally formed as a molded unit as shown in FIG. 3, or they may be separate elements fastened together by a suitable adhesive.

The upper regions of the webs 20 of the leg portions 12 are secured to opposite faces 24 of the upper section 13, whereby these leg portions project from the section 13 in opposite directions. Here again, the bases 19, webs 20, and section 13 may be integrally formed as shown in FIG. 3, or they may be separate elements fastened together by a suitable adhesive. The lower regions of the webs 20 are spaced apart a distance equal to the face-to-face dimension of the section 14 so that they can snugly accommodate the section 14 between them. The inner ends of the bases 19 are shaped similar to the inner ends of the bases 15 so that when the pedestal is in operative condition each engages not only the face 24 of the section 14 engaged by its respective web 20, but also areas of the faces adjacent to and on either side of that face. Also, the inner ends of the margins of the bases 19 are cut at an angle so that they are arranged in opposition to the claims. 1

angular cut margin ends of is in operative condition.

It maybe seen, therefore, that the present pedestal comprises two independent but .cooperable' components, namely, thecorriponent comprising the section 14 andleg the bases when the pedestal portion including upper-andlower separable sections adapted to be arrangedin vertical alignment, a pair of egs fastened to said lower. section and extending lateral 1y. from it in opposite directions, the lower surfaces of" said legs being no higher "than the lower end of said lower portions 11, and the component comprising the section 13 and leg portions 12. When these two components are 1 1 separated, as shown in FIG; 4,' each is a relatively flat 7 member which together with the other component can be' wrapped tofiform a relatively -fiat, compact package." When itris desired to'use theped'estal, the components are held so that the sections 13 and 14 are in vertical align- V ment, and the stepped contours oftheir opposed surfaces I are inia cooperative orientation. The two "components. I r are then moved towardeach other so that the section 13 moves betwecnthe upper regions of the webs 16, and; V the section 14 moves between the lower regions of. they webs and the inner ends of the'bases 19. Movement continues until the parts reach the operativepcondi-tion of the pedestal, shown in FIGSJ and 2. In this condition, the faces 27 and '28 are inoppo'sition, as are the, endsof of the bases19 snugly grasp-the lowenend 'o'f the-section- 14. In addition, the section. 13 fits snugly between thewebs 1'6 and the section,14,fits snugly.between thewebsi 20. Consequently, interengagement of the components which it is used; Furthermore, since' no'elementof' this" pedestalneed fit inside the pole, the pedestalrcan be'used with solid as well as hollow poles.

' of legs in' crosswise relation said pairs of non-horizontal The invention has .beenshown and describedin-ipre j ferred. form only, and by way ofzexamplqand-many section. 14 so-that the bore'is provided 'witha bottom wall:- upon which the lower endof'the pole 2 2'imayr rest. Th'e' presence ofsuch abottom wall permits-the pole and pedestalto be picked 'up and moved about without danger of the pole slipping downwardly with respect to :the

pedestal. It is understood, therefore, that the'Iinvention is surfacepf .saidcentral.tuhular portionjhas a polygonal cross-section, and the inner? ends of'r sa'id pair of legs fastened, to s aid upper section areprovideda contour. Y entire lengthaofthe central portion 1-0,:it may be desirable; f scvoperable with: he. u er-c n o r f said, b a 1 to terrninatethe boreshoft of the lower end ofithe lower? variations may be made the invention which. will still 'bev comprised within its spirit. For examplealthough .the drawings show the b0re 21 extending throiighflthei accommodating the loweriend of the pole, said tubular section, and anotherpair of legsfastened to said upper 7 maybe arranged invertical alignment}witl1 said pairs of legsin. crosswise relationship, the lower surfaces of said, other pairof tlegs being so'spaced below said upper section that when said sections are arranged in vertical alignment the lower surfaces of said pairs of ,legs' will belocated in thesame plane to supporting area. y g o A a :2. 1A p'ed stalaccording to claimv 1, wherein said pair providea stable cross-shaped oflegs fastened toi said lowergsection include portions extending-above the upperendof-said lower section, said portions being spaced apart in the region above said lower section-a distance Sufiicient to accommodate said pp rs fl be wee fl m,

.. A pedestal accordi 'g to clairri'l 'wherein the lower face {9f said upper section'is-stepped tofpresent a pair of non-horizontal faces, aridjhe upper face of said lower section is;sirnilarly rsteppedto,present a pair 'of non-hori- 5 zontal 'faces, said stepsbeingsodocated that whe n said sections-are arranged i Y rtic'al alignment withsaid'pairs faces will be disposed. in opposition to r each other whereby relative rotation between said sections is prevented. o 4. A pedestal accordingi 't o claim l wherein the outer tion 'whereby when said sections are arranged in vertical not limited t'o-any' specific formror embodiment except-"- insofar as such What is claimed is: Q i

limitations are included in the appended Y central tubular portion, having a longitudinal-bore for i 7 2,933,276.. .sh finer Y -5.f Ajpedestal accordingt claimf4 wherein the inner 'ends ofa-llqof said legs are so formed that each engages the two legs adjacent to it when said sections are arranged in vertical alignment."v i 5 References.:Cited'inthe file this patent .YUNITED STATESiPATENIS v '1 2343,34 1 f Samhels j July 15, 1958 Mar.i27, 1962; 

1. A KNOCK-DOWN PEDESTAL FOR SUPPORTING THE POLE OF AND ADVERTISING DISPLAY IN ERECT CONDITION, COMPRISING A CENTRAL TUBULAR PORTION HAVING A LONGITUDINAL BORE FOR ACCOMMODATING THE LOWER END OF THE POLE, SAID TUBULAR PORTION INCLUDING UPPER AND LOWER SEPARABLE SECTIONS ADAPTED TO BE ARRANGED IN VERTICAL ALIGNMENT, A PAIR OF LEGS FASTENED TO SAID LOWER SECTION AND EXTENDING LATERALLY FROM IT IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS, THE LOWER SURFACES OF SAID LEGS BEING NO HIGHER THAN THE LOWER END OF SAID LOWER SECTION, AND ANOTHER PAIR OF LEGS FASTENED TO SAID UPPER SECTION AND EXTENDING LATERALLY FROM IT IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS, SAID OTHER PAIR OF LEGS DEPENDING FROM SAID UPPER SECTION AND BEING SPACED APART IN THE REGION BELOW SAID UPPER SECTION A DISTANCE SUFFICIENT TO SNUGLY ACCOMMODATE SAID LOWER SECTION BETWEEN THEM, WHEREBY SAID SECTIONS MAY BE ARRANGED IN VERTICAL ALIGNMENT WITH SAID PAIRS OF LEGS IN CROSSWISE RELATIONSHIP, THE LOWER SURFACES OF SAID OTHER PAIR OF LEGS BEING SO SPACED BELOW SAID UPPER SECTION THAT WHEN SAID SECTIONS ARE ARRANGED IN VERTICAL ALIGNMENT THE LOWER SURFACES OF SAID PAIRS OF LEGS WILL BE LOCATED IN THE SAME PLANE TO PROVIDE A STABLE CROSS-SHAPED SUPPORTING AREA. 